October 28, 2008

Strike.TV Launches Largest Web Network of Original Hollywood Shows

by ssavage

Today, Strike.TV officially launched its much-anticipated online network, featuring original HD Web videos from well-known Hollywood creators. The portal represents the first formal effort to bring the writers of some of Hollywood's most successful and popular franchises to the world of online video. The company will operate a programmed format and currently has over forty original Web series and shorts, which encompass a wide variety of genres that will roll out daily on www.Strike.TV.

The talent behind the first shows to premiere on Strike.TV comes from films, TV shows and internet series such as "The Office,""Saturday Night Live,""The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,""The Wire,""LonelyGirl15,""Die Hard,""Licence to Kill,""General Hospital,""Days of Our Lives,""Child's Play,""Californication,""Medium,""Cold Case,""How I Met Your Mother,""Mad TV,""Malcolm in the Middle,""10 Items or Less" and "The Bob Newhart Show," just to name a few.

"We recognized a real opportunity to provide high-quality, original content to online audiences seeking entertainment," said Peter Hyoguchi, Strike.TV CEO. "We're essentially building a real network in a virtual world. It's unprecedented and innovative companies like BitGravity and Episodic who are helping Strike.TV achieve its goals. Not only is Strike.TV a statement about the independence that the Web medium brings to the creators, but it's also a direct response to the maturing tastes of the online audience who consistently seek high-quality entertainment on the Internet. We now have one community built around the theme of independence; one where tremendous storytellers can entertain and where a global audience can watch content that rivals that on TV and in theaters, anytime and anywhere, for free."

Strike.TV's Web series will stream in HD with the help of BitGravity Inc., a next-generation Content Delivery Network (CDN) and Episodic which provides the video player that is the user interface for Strike.TV. Together, they provide the Strike.TV online audience with a consistent, high-quality entertainment experience that can be viewed across a range of operating systems, browsers and bandwidths. BitGravity and Episodic were selected for their quality, scalability and ability to support a quickly growing audience and withstand the consistent flow of original content, on top of existing episodes, that Strike.TV has planned.

"The online entertainment industry has changed dramatically over the past year and content companies like Strike.TV can affordably stream in HD to audiences around the world that demand a quickstart, high-quality user experience," said Perry Wu, co-founder and CEO of BitGravity. "With BitGravity delivering a highly reliable HD stream, Strike.TV can focus its effort on providing cutting-edge, original online entertainment to this growing consumer base."

"With the Episodic video publishing platform and BitGravity's superior network, Strike.TV is able to deliver a Web experience worthy of their quality content. We're very excited to be working with Strike.TV in what we see as a growing trend of Hollywood talent turning to the Web where products like Episodic and BitGravity allow them to control all aspects of their content, including monetization," said Noam Lovinsky, CEO of Episodic.

Beyond Strike.TV's on-site audience, the content will be super-syndicated to huge built-in audiences on YouTube and Joost; and available for television viewing via the Tivo(R) video download service. These partnerships will provide users with a variety of ways to find Strike.TV content. Meanwhile, the popularity of each location as a go-to destination for unique video content instantly strengthens the position of Strike.TV in the marketplace.

The Strike.TV website allows full-screen views, comments, fan forums and a virtual community to be built around each show via the website, as well as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter that will consistently update friends and fans and help build a one-to-one relationship between creators and viewers.

In keeping with Strike.TV's roots as a charity whose purpose was to help individuals impacted by the 2007 Writers Guild of America strike, the first three months of ad revenue profits, with help from BitGravity and Episodic, will be donated to the Entertainment Assistance Program (EAP) of The Actors Fund (www.actorsfund.org). The Actors Fund is a national organization that assists everyone - and not just actors - who works in theatre, film, TV, music, dance, radio and opera in times of need, crisis or transition. The Fund provides essential programs including social services and emergency assistance, health services, employment and training and housing support.

The first 10 shows to air at launch are Global Warming starring Kristen Wiig and Aasif Mandvi, House Poor with Mindy Kaling, Tom Holland's 5 or Die, Joe and Kate, Life In General and Greenville General, Daryl From OnCar, Side Effects, The Challenge with Bob Newhart, Unknown Sender and With the Angels.

About Strike.TV

Strike.TV was formed in January 2008 in response to the need for Hollywood creators to exercise their independence. Borne from the collective desire of many of Hollywood's top writers, directors and actors to create, control and distribute their own stories, Strike.TV is the culmination of that effort and provides an outlet for total creative freedom and high-quality, professionally produced content. As the first programmed network with a huge cross-section of genres, Strike.TV breaks new ground by distributing the largest made-for-web original series by Hollywood professionals. Strike.TV is delivered globally by BitGravity's CDN. For more information, visit http://www.strike.tv.

About BitGravity

BitGravity, Inc., built the first content delivery network (CDN) optimized to instantaneously deliver HD-quality video on demand, live and via interactive applications to massive audiences on the Internet. The company is based in Burlingame, CA and is privately held, with strategic investment from Allen & Company, Tata Communications and private investors. For more information, please see www.BitGravity.com.

About Episodic

The Episodic video publishing platform provides producers with everything they need to distribute, manage, and monetize their video properties on the web. Episodic takes care of the technology and lets producers focus on what matters most--the content. Episodic is a privately held company in San Francisco, CA. For more information, please see http://www.episodic.com.